Friday, August 31, 2012

Happy Labor Day Weekend and the unofficial end to summer. This weekend I will be trying to squeeze as much as possible out of the rest of summer. I plan on wearing only white clothes and bathing suits and eating nothing but ice cream. I hope you have fun weekend plans also! Here are my favorites from around the web as we head into the holiday weekend. Enjoy!

My sister owns iPod cases for different occasions. She has the workout case, the everyday case, and the going out case, but she may have to pick up one of these personalized cases fromPlum Street Prints, since she doesn't often come across things with her name on them. Personally, this one is my favorite.

Has anyone else tried using drinking glasses as a musical instrument, but you just can't seem to figure out the right notes? Well, worry no longer about having just the right amount of beverage in your glass to play Mary Had a Little Lamb with thesePerfect Pitch Wine Glasses.

I, for one, could care less how geeky I look in a bike helmet. I grew up with parents who instilled the fear of being safe in me at an early age through horrific stories of kids my age getting hurt because they hadn't worn helmets. Still, I know lots of people who won't wear helmets because they don't like how they look or they feel too clunky. With the invention of theinvisible bike helmet, they may now be out of excuses. Invented by two women in Sweden, this bike helmet remains invisible unless you need it, similar to a car airbag. If, however you need it, prepare to look like a character in a sci-fi movie.

I am constantly looking for, and in need of ways to carve more time into my day. This listfrom Apartment Therapy has some pretty good tips. Also, if you are wondering how most Americans spend their day, check out this breakdown by NPR.

How did I not know about this amazing dinner for 200 at the Peconic Land Trust's annual At The Common Table Dinner at Quail Hill Farm in Amagansett? All of the food and wine for the dinner comes from the farmland the event was held on, a neighboring vineyard and from the sea nearby. All of the chefs donated their time, and all the tickets purchased went to conserving working farms and natural lands on Long Island. I am putting next year's event on my calendar now.

A few Favorite Fridays ago I includedguilt free ice cream as one of my favorites. I was all excited about the chocolate flavor, and then I discovered this post from A Beautiful Mess with even more guilt-free varieties. Check it out!

I've tested out 59 recipes to-date, and pizza makes up a good portion of those recipes, but I still have yet to make my own pizza dough. This recipe, also from A Beautiful Mess, for basic kitchen dough seems right up my alley because it seems pretty straightforward and easy. We shall see in the weeks to come...

Growing up, some of my favorite books were by Roald Dahl. I thought his books were different than others and hilarious. I couldn't get enough of Witches, James and the Giant Peach, Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, Matilda, and George's Marvellous Medicine. For fans like me out there, now we can relive our childhood withthese Roald Dahl mugs from www.msmugs.com (As seen on A Cup of Jo)

Thursday, August 30, 2012

I really am not a fan of those fake-out days when everything seems to be going along smoothly, like waking up on time to go to the gym before work, getting to work early, and feeling super productive before 9 a.m., and then you forget your lunch at home, and everything seems to go crazy from there. All of the sudden three people need you to take care of three top priority issues at the same time, a project is due first-thing the next morning when it's currently only 20% complete, and you drop a perfectly good dessert on the floor. Thankfully, this fake-out day was redeemed with a massage at the Four Seasons (THANK YOU LAURA AND JEFF!) and dinner at Peacock Cafe (before swinging by the apartment to say hello to my husband for 15 minutes before heading back to the office to finish up the pending project). What a long, strange trip it's been.

Wednesday, August 29, 2012

If you are wondering what to wear to a baby shower that's also a pool party, my answer would be this dress. I swore I wouldn't get on the mullet dress train, but I lied. Turns out the mullet dress really is all baby shower up front and pool party in the back...that's how the saying goes right? Also, you can't beat Target. Where else can you get party dresses, groceries, and shower curtain liners all in one place?

Tuesday, August 28, 2012

Once I mastered a few tough recipes, I figured that was good enough and set off to find a way to make easy recipes even easier, like this recipe for Chicken and Summer Vegetable Tostadas. The original recipe calls for fresh corn and chicken tenders. I read it as canned corn and Perdue shortcuts and set off to make one of the easiest and tasty week night dinners to date.

For this recipe, the prep work, i.e., cutting up the zucchini, onion, and cilantro, took longer than actually putting the dish together. Don't believe me? See for yourself.

First, preheat your broiler. That took about a second right? Then combine the cumin, salt, and black paper and mix it together well. That took maybe 30 seconds, right?

Once your spices are mixed, sprinkle them evenly over the chicken (15-30 seconds of your time).

Next heat your oil in a large nonstick skillet over medium-high heat and add the chicken to the pan. Saute for 2-3 minutes until the chicken is warm.

Next add in your corn, onion, and zucchini (about 5 seconds):

Saute for about 2 minutes and then stir in your salsa and 2 tablespoons of cilantro. Cook for another 2 minutes until the liquid almost evaporates, stirring frequently.

Working with 2 tortillas at a time, arrange tortillas in a single layer on a baking sheet; lightly coat tortillas with cooking spray. Broil 3 minutes or until lightly browned. Spoon about 3/4 cup chicken mixture in the center of each tortilla; sprinkle each serving with 1/4 cup cheese.

Broil an additional 2 minutes or until cheese melts. Repeat procedure with remaining tortillas, chicken mixture, and cheese. Sprinkle each serving with about 3/4 teaspoon of remaining cilantro.

Serve immediately, as not to waste any more time than the 13 minutes and 6 seconds you already have, and so you can enjoy instantly.

Check out the recipe for Chicken and Summer Vegetable Tostadas and other tasty treats on my What's Cookin'page.

Monday, August 27, 2012

So, it's Monday again, but I was lucky to have a three day work week last week and a lovely weekend, complete with lots of dates with Jesse, quality time with friends, including a baby shower/pool party full of friends, kids, and Georgetown Cupcakes (yum), time to run some errands, and a few good workouts, including a hot and hilly long, but successful, marathon training run. Pictures of the fun can be viewed here.

I also caught a cold, which isn't so lucky, but nothing that Sudafed, tea, and NyQuil can't handle. Still, I apologize in advance if this post doesn't make much sense since my head is still a bit foggy.

Last week, I also got to wear this fun skirt for the first time. I am a big fan of this skirt - the pattern, the colors, the pockets - but I do think it may be a bit too bold for one of my coworkers who literally jumped back from me when I stood up from behind my desk and he saw the entire outfit. Men.

Friday, August 24, 2012

It's that time of week again. Friday. Time for Friday favorites. Here's a round-up of my favorite web finds from the week. Enjoy! See you all next week.

When I was little and watched Sesame Street religiously, one of my favorite characters was the cookie monster. I felt like we were kindred spirits because of our deep love and appreciation for cookies. Today, I am excited to share my friend's famous cookie dough recipe from Big Bird's Busy Book from the 1970s. You can view a more reader-friendly versionhere.

We live in a one bedroom apartment where closet space fills up quickly (usually with my stuff). Thankfully, these15 over the door solutions from Apartment Therapy may help make some more room to fit one more j.crew skirt in our closet comfortably.

Can you believe summer is almost over? Don't get me wrong, I love the fall - pumpkin spice lattes, marathon season, leaves changing color - but it doesn't mean I am ready to give up on the summer just yet. I may need to invest in this Endless Summerprint from Society 6 by Melanie Alexandra to help extend my summer just a little bit longer.

I have been envious of every blogger that already has this necklace. A big thanks to Liz over at 26 and Counting for finding this excellent knock-off. Once I get my own teardrop knock off, I too will be a cool blogger...right?

How fun is this look? I love the Chambray with the bright green. Go Kendi! (as usual)

This look is a bit more subdued. Must find these boots.

Or maybe these...

Why didn't I think of this brilliant idea before for Cinnamon Roll Waffles? Oh well, at least Kaela from Cookin' and Kickin' did.

I've never liked real oatmeal. The most I can stomach are the packets of oatmeal that only taste good because they are loaded with sugar. This recipe for blueberry banana baked oatmeal from Budget Bytes, however, may be a game changer. Yummm....